Matrix Chronicles: Can the Lost be Redeemed?
by Master Fwiffo
Summary: Matrix Chronicles Section 5: Starscream makes a bid for glory, and a mysterious figure hurls Prowl into his treacherous plans...
1. Chapter 1

TFE

Can the Lost be Redeemed

Copyright 2006, masterfwiffo. All rights reserved.

Optimus's optics slowly burned back to life. His first thought was a jumble trying to remember how he had gone offline in the first place. His second thought was "I'm gonna kill her."

With a groan, he pushed himself up. "Welcome back." A soft voice greeted him. He glanced in Aidias direction and sighed. "Next time you do that, so help me, I'll have you court martialed."

Aidia quickly turned her back, trying to hide the emotion that threatened to spring forth. Optimus paled a little bit. "I was kidding."

"I know..." Aidia said weakly. "S- sorry."

Optimus sat up and glanced around, suddenly nervous. Aidia was acting out of character, and that worried him.

"How long have I been out?" He asked quietly.

Aidia took a deep breath to cool down her systems. "Two days."

His eyes narrowed. Her tone of voice betrayed her. "What's happened?"

"I think you better let me handle this Aidia." Jetfires voice rang clear, as he stepped in. "Something has happened Major. And no, you're not going to like it."

-----

Prowl sat alone, surrounded by the darkness of his quarters, which now seemed like a cage. Jetfire had wasted no time in confining him there, and shortly after, both he and Red Alert and her verbally ripped out his already injured spark and tore it to shreds. Now he was alone. Aidia, Ironhide and Aris were all avoiding him. That left Prowl alone with his thoughts, which to him, was far from a comforting prospect.

The scene replayed endless times, and to Prowl, that was the most torturous thing of all. A thousand different escapes, a thousand different endings, a thousand different possibilities- and yet, somehow, his primal instinct had gone with the one that left a human dead. And that hurt far worse then anything Red or Jetfire could say.

A knock on his door startled him out of his brooding thoughts, and he looked up to see the bulky frame of Optimus Major striding in. Prowl looked away; he couldn't bear to look his commander in the eye.

Optimus glanced down at him. "I know everything." He said quietly. "I've seen the humans footage, and heard all sides of the story. Except yours. What happened, Prowl?"

It was silent for a long time, before Prowl could muster the strength to speak. "I can't offer an explanation, sir." He said quietly. "I was alone... and the transmissions... and... I didn't realize what I was doing- I'm sorry..."

Optimus continued to stare at him, unmoving.

Prowl shifted uncomfortably. "I'm sorry." He said again.

"It doesn't make sense." Optimus said quietly. "Everything you did was against everything I've ever known about you. What aren't you telling us?"

Prowl didn't answer.

"Prowl..." Optimus said softly. "I'm willing to give you a chance, if you'll just tell me what happened."

Silence was his only response.

"Very well." Optimus said cooly, getting up and turning his back. Without another word, he marched toward the door. But but as he reached for the switch, a voice, barely discernible, reached his audios.

"I thought he was going to kill him."

Optimus turned back. "Explain."

"The man was hitting him... He was just a child... crying so hard... I didn't understand... I thought..."

Optimus nodded. "I see. And?"

"If I had known..." Prowls voice was weakening. "If only I could do it all again... But I can't. He's dead now... I-"

A hand descended on his shoulder, gripping his shoulder. "My friend." Optimus said gently. "There's always a second chance. For everyone. Even you."

Prowl looked weakly up at him, confusion in his eyes.

Optimus turned his back again. "Things won't be the same of course. The humans are against us now, so the entire base is effectively in lock-down unless we absolutely have to go out. But we need you Prowl. We won't abandon you."

Prowl stared back at him weakly, unsure of what so say.

"And you might be interested in knowing," Optimus continued on his way out. "The man survived. He received medical treatment in time."

And sudden, overwhelming flood of emotion filled Prowls spark as Optimus made his exit. Prowl chocked back the flood of emotions, gratefulness, sorrow, regret... and relief.

---

Outside, Optimus sighed. While the human had indeed survived, what he had neglected to mention was that the human would remain crippled for the rest of his life. But Prowl could go on without knowing that. The bot had already gone through enough. He left Prowls room, heading back toward the remains of the bridge. Jetfire was waiting.

"I don't approve."

"I know you don't." Optimus answered, seating himself.

"The kid killed a human! We can't-"

"Almost killed, Jetfire. But both you and I know that wasn't his intent."

"But he's-"

"One of the brightest young Autobots I've ever worked with." Optimus finished, glaring at Jetfire. Jetfire returned the look for a long time, then looked away.

"I know this isn't easy for you Optimus." Jetfire said quietly. "But I'm going to have to tell Command when we get back."

"I know." Optimus answered. "We'll deal with that when the time comes. For now, let Prowl be. He's suffered enough."

The two remained quiet for a long moment, before Jetfire spoke again.

"Then what do we do for now?"

"Sit. And wait." Optimus answered. "I don't want to go out again unless we have to. It's for the best."

"I hope to Primus you're right." Jetfire shook his head.

----

A week later, the world continued on its course. From America to Europe, thoughts of the giant robot that had appeared from nowhere remained at the back of everyones minds. Several police stations in the heart of California had gone and repainted their vehicles to keep them from being mistaken for the robot, while others kept their traditional colors. Surprisingly, a mass panic had not broken out, though plenty of questions and theories about the robots origin were bantered about. Some were convinced it was a secret government project gone awry, others thought they were space aliens, and still others thought they were a new terrorist weapon.

At the military base where Michelle had been stationed, things were suddenly far busier. Many new people and experts came in to interview the only civilian who knew what had really happened at the lab, and who had seen the robots up close. Several other witnesses from the area had also been brought in to join her, but none had seen nearly the same amount she had. They came and went, but Michelle stayed, lonely in her cell. She had, however, found a bit of comfort in both Chris and Ben, the only two in the base who had dared to call her friend. They weren't much, but they helped stifle the loneliness.

At the wreck of Aris, the Autobots continued on a near-daily routine of standing sentry, trying to clean up the wreckage, monitoring Earth broadcasts (Ironhide in particular had become addicted to something the humans called 'Westerns'), and playing hands of Sharkticon. Prowl stayed alone in his quarters for the most part, rarely venturing out to join his friends, most of whom tried to be friendly, but still couldn't help but remain uneasily quiet around him.

But up in Earth's orbit, on the Decepticons ship _Shadoix_, dissent was ever-present, in the form of a very bitter Starscream.

"Another cycle wasted!" Starscream roared, waving his arms angrily. "For what? Just sitting here, while our limited Energon reserves waste away?"

"Shut up, Starscream." Megatron answered. Were he not so weary, he would have beaten some respect into Starscreams hide. But of all the cons aboard the ship, Megatron was the most keenly aware of the shrinking Energon supplies- he hardly needed Starscream to remind him yet again. Megatron had even been under-powering himself in a conservation attempt, and he had Shockfleet put in stasis. The massive giant had been mostly freed from the wreckage, but he was a useless energy drain as is.

Demolisher was no longer in the CR chamber, and Sixshot had managed to fix himself. Skywarp, however, was still recovering from his last battle, the details of which still eluded Megatron. And it was that thought that prevented him from launching another mining expedition.

Skywarp was no weak mechanoid, and the state that he had stumbled back in worried Megatron, especially the fact that, from what little he had gleaned from Skywarp, there were only two Autobots in the fight, and only one of which ever raised a hand against him. Between that and the disastrous encounter with Optimus, Megatron was becoming very aware that that he had underestimated his opponents.

Furthering this was the disturbing images from the human communications they had intercepted. Not blind to the potential usefulness of the humans information network, Megatron had ordered Sixshot to monitor them shortly after their arrival. And those monitors had provided a shocking revelation. At the same time Skywarp had been so thoroughly defeated, another Autobot had nearly killed a human. The thought shocked Megatron, not so much for the act, as the fact that it was, as far as he could see, it was in cold blood. These were no ordinary Autobots, and the more he dwelled on that thought, the more it worried him.

"And furthermore," Starscream continued, oblivious to Megatrons musings. "Your incompetence continues to astound me. You let three more of your troops get defeated by one bot- one bot!- putting all of them out of commission for a decacycle."

"Starscream," Megatron stated flatly, "That 'one bot' split your head open. Now, unless you would like me to do the same, I suggest you switch yourself off."

"Threatening your best warrior?" Starscream said, his voice a mocking tone of horror, "Why Megatron, that is low even for yo-"

Megatron finally cracked. With one swift motion, he grabbed Starscream by the throat, and hoisted him off the ground. "I have no patience for your antics." He missed, squeezing his neck all the tighter, until cracks formed around his fingers. "Test me again, and you will pray that the Autobots had you instead of me." He let go, and Starscream crumpled to the floor, holding his neck, optics tight in pain.

Megatron turned away. "If you are so desperate for energy, then you go and get some yourself. See how you fare down there. If you survive at all. Do not dare return without your goal, or your punishment will be far greater then you can bear."

"Yes... Lord Megatron..." Starscream said weakly, then made it a point to leave the room as quickly as possible.

----

"Again, Megatron underestimates me." Starscreams words came out under his breath. "But he'll see. I'll show him. I was the greatest until Lord Gigatron put me here. Megatron's holding me back. I'll show him what I can do without his interference! I'll succeed where he failed, I'll take my own command and-"

"Starscream will you cut that racket out?" Demolishers voice called out from his quarters. "For Primus's sake..."

Starscream growled, crossing his arms over his chest. He had just as much distaste for Megatrons loyal lackeys Demolisher and Skywarp as he did for Megatron himself, and while they tolerated each other, he and Shockwave were by no means on good terms.

But if he was going to retrieve a supply of Energon and win back Megatrons favor, he would need help- even he acknowledged that. But those three gone, his help was limited. Shockfleet, a dumb brute of sheer force, and absolutely worthless. Cyclonus, an insane idiot. And Sixshot...

Starscream smiled. Impressionable, insecure, young Sixshot. He'd do nicely. Now to find him when he wasn't being hounded by that arrogant brother of his...

---

Sixshot was indeed alone, his single optic staring quietly at a slow moving screen. The readouts on the Shadoix showed that little had changed since they had first found themselves stuck in orbit almost two weeks ago. Despite hours of painstaking repairs, little had changed- other then the painful burr in his cannon-arm. He rubbed it again gently- he had repaired the cannon-arm himself because he trusted no one else to do it. That arm was his pride and joy, the ultimate achievement of his technical prowess. An identical twin to his brothers, it was designed to create energy streams varying in power from a mere wielder, to a drill, to a devastating blast that could wipe out a city block in an instant- all while using far less power then any equivalent weapon. Decepticon engineers marveled at him when he had first presented it, and for a short time, he had been hailed as Cybertrons greatest engineer, as he clearly deserved. But there was a drawback- it seemed the weapon was completely ineffective without a spark behind its power-core, meaning that for the cannon to work, it had to be built-in to a Transformer. And very few were willing to sacrifice an arm for it. But Sixshot did it anyway, as had his brother. And while he did miss his right hand on occasion, the replacement was more then worth it.

At least, thats what he wanted to think.

He raised the cannon and prodded the computer screen clumsily, as that was all the maneuverability that it had. He sighed, dropping it back down to his side, and winced at the sudden sharp pain from the burr. Damn Autobots...

"Sixshot!"

Sixshot dropped his head at that voice. Of all the mechanoids in the universe, there were few he wanted to speak to less. "Yes, Starscream?"

"My dear young Sixshot..." Starscream began.

"No." Sixshot answered. "I don't care what it is, I don't want to."

Starscream grinned. "Now, don't be like that Sixshot. I need your help. The kind only you can deliver."

"My help?" Sixshot answered warily. There was a catch, there had to be.

"You are aware of the growing shortage of our Energon?"

"Of course..."

"I plan to rectify the problem and get us away from this worthless planet at the same time."

Sixshot sighed. "And how, exactly, do you intend to do that?"

"We're going down to the planet and-"

"No." Sixshot growled. "Megatron tried that already, and I almost lost my arm. I won't do that again."

"But thats because Megatron is a fool." Starscream growled. ""THe Autobot never would have found you had you been there in the first place. I can rectify this, in one swift move. But I cannot do it without your, err, _invaluable_ skills."

Sixshot shook his head.

"Listen Sixshot..." Starscream said slyly, "You are the most valuable member of our crew. I recognize that. Megatron refuses to."

Sixshot hand went to his cannon arm, a habit since he had first installed it. He rubbed the main sensors gently. "Well..."

"Why do you think Megatron leaves you up here all the time? Very rarely does he let you come down, on _any_ mission, even though Shockwave goes down all the time. Why? Because he thinks your worthless."

Sixshots hand tightened around the cannon.

"But I know you're not." Starscream continued, placing his hand on Sixshots shoulder. "Come down with me, and prove to Megatron just how much you're worth. Make sure he never looks down on you again. Maybe then you can prove yourself more useful then your brother."

Sixshot winced at those words. Starscream smiled- he knew exactly what buttons to push to make Sixshot his. It was easy.

"Ok... I'll go." Sixshot said quietly. "But you better be right."

"My dear Sixshot," Starscreams grin widened, "I'm _always_ right."

----

The Autobots were completely unaware of the shadowy form that was reclining on top of their base. His red face glowing eerily in the night, the mechanoid stared up at the stars. Boredom was an ever present companion for him, and very little lightened the monotony of his life. But then _they_ had shown up, and things had gotten fun again. But a week without any activity returned him to the realm of monotony. He glanced up at the sky, as he had done every night for the past week, hoping that today would be the day the Decepticons moved again. Then he would have some _real_ fun.

There was a sudden sound as the symbol on his arm flashed from red to purple, then back again. He glanced down on it, his face seeming to widen. Underneath his horned helmet, it appeared more and more like a demon grinning. "About time." He chuckled, taking to the air to find where the Decepticons had landed.

----

"I don't like this." Sixshot growled. "It's far to close to a human settlement."

"Quit your whining." Cyclonus chuckled. "Maybe it'll get us some action!"

Starscream shook his head and sighed. Cyclonus had more or less invited himself along as soon as he had learned they were going planetside, and while Starscream was pleased to have backup, he knew Cyclonus was too unstable to be much use.

From his vantage point, he could see a human city sprawling out below from their position on the hill. Starscream had selected here for the closeness of the Energon vein to the surface- the nearby city was a worry, but only if the Autobots interfered. Which, if he played his cards right, they wouldn't have the chance to.

He had taken great precautions to avoid detection on his teleportation sequence, jamming the surrounding area for the briefest of moments, and teleporting down late at night when no-one would be around to suspect their actions. But now the hard part was finishing the job before the Autobots detected him. They were obviously no fools, these Autobots, so he would have to be quick.

"Get to work." He growled at Sixshot. "Lets get this done with, fast."

Sixshot turned, and ignited his cannon as Starscreams eyes scanned the horizon. For a brief moment he thought he saw a human craft zipping about, then it faded into the night. He paid it no mind.

----

Morning came, the sunlight filling the area around Autobot HQ. Prowl was out to watch the sunrise, sitting quietly, alone. His friends still tended to avoid him, since the incident. They probably didn't realize how much that hurt him. The thoughts that haunted him were were ever present now, and the human newscasts did little to comfort him. He had heard himself described as a monster, a demon, a robotic killer... If only he could ever shake those from his mind, maybe he could convince himself that he wasn't. Those he called his friends certainly did very little to help.

As Prowl sat alone with his thoughts, he didn't notice the being standing over his head, on the hull of Aris. It chuckled to itself, and turned. The communication array was a small collection of antennae and radar, situated in a small little cluster, beaming and receiving all kinds of signals and data from the sky above. And with one swift kick, it was gone.

"Showtime." He grinned. The symbol on his arm crashed down to purple and he took to the air.

-----

"Hey!" Ironhide protested as the screen turned into static, and then faded into black. "Aris! I was watching that!"

Jetfire, Red Alert and Optimus glanced up from their game of Sharkticon. "Oh get over it Ironhide." Red Alert sighed. "You could be doing something more productive."

Ironhide ignored him. "Aris!"

"I didn't do it!" Aris protested, her form coming out beside him. "I didn't-"

The ship shook.

Jetfire was on his feet in seconds. "That was an explosion!" He yelled. "Prowls out there, come on!"

----

The area surrounding the ship burned. And in the middle of it, a small police car dodged blasts from the triangular craft that weaved and bobbed through the smoke, his maddening laugh drowning out the roar of the flames.

Prowl transformed and fired back, the cannons on his arms leaping to life, sending two streams of energy toward his attacker, who dodged through them easily and returned the blasts.

"Prowl!" Optimus's voice came. "Get inside!"

Prowl didn't need to be told twice. He transformed, tires squealing against the dirt as he tried to turn around. But his pursuer was already bearing down on him from behind. As Prowl raced back through the flames, he didn't see the swirling purple hole open up in front of him until it was too late. Both he and his attacker disappeared into the gate, which closed promptly behind them.

"Did you see that?" Jetfire cried. "The Decepticons don't use warp gates!"

"That was the Decepticon who attacked me." Optimus hissed, hatred in his voice. "And lead me straight to Megatron. What's his game?"

"Worry about it later!" Jetfire yelled. "Aris! Find Prowl!"

"I can't!" Her voice came back. "He knocked out my sensor array!"

"Well, that's just Prime..." Optimus growled.

----

Prowl thundered to the ground and hit his brakes, skidding sideways into a stop. A moment later his attacker shot over his head, laughing like a maniac. "Slag!" Prowl swore, trying to get his bearing as the Decepticon flyer disappeared into the distance.

And only then did he realize where he was, as a car swerved past him, its horn blaring. Crowds of humans rushed out to see what was happening, and Prowl became deathly aware that he was in the center of a human city. Another car swerved past, and Prowl slammed on reverse to get out of the way, backing straight through a parked car and into a brick wall. More humans rushed out, joining the seemingly infinite crowd of onlookers. But the humans came closer, their words even more frightening then their presence.

"Maybe it's that robot I saw on the news!"

Fear filled Prowl's every circuit. "Oh no..."

----

Sixshot paused from his drilling. Starscream glanced at him in annoyance. "Don't stop now you idiot, we're almost through."

Sixshot shook his head. "No... Did you hear something?"

"Quiet Sixshot." Starscream growled. "Just keep drilling."

"But I thought I heard something! Maybe we should go-"

Cyclonus broke out in his obnoxious laughter. "Didya hear that? Little Sixshots scared!"

Sixshot whirled. "Why you-"

"Down, Sixshot." Starscream ordered. "Panicking isn't going to get us anywh-"

He didn't get a chance to finish as the ground exploded around them.

"I told you!" Sixshot yelled as he hit the ground.

Starscreams optics went to the sky, as the triangular craft turned for a second pass. "Keep drilling!" Starscream roared. "I'll handle him!" And he leapt into the sky, his chest swinging upward as the rest of him compacted into the sleek jet shape. He responded with his own burst of fire and took off after the invader.

The bait accepted, the triangular craft turned, and headed back toward the human settlement, Starscream hot in pursuit.

"I'm going too!" Cyclonus whooped.

"NO!" Sixshot shrieked, grabbing him, fearing more for his own safety then anything else. "Stay!'

Cyclonus looked longingly as Starscream chased his pursuer away, and growled. "I coulda blasted him..."

"I need you." Sixshot hissed. "If we don't get this Energon, I'll never get over it."

"Whiner." Cyclonus muttered.

----

Prowl shook as the crowd of humans came closer. One was yelling, "Careful now! It could be dangerous!" They were already reaching for him, thousands of their tiny hands trying to take hold of him. Along the busy street, several cars were pulling to the side to watch. And in the distance, sirens, the same sirens that had haunted him for a week, came closer.

All Prowl wanted now was for his spark to go offline, and end it all.

----

Starscream whooped with excitement as he bore down on his prey, sending streams of energy toward his target, who deftly weaved through the blasts. The air rushed over his frame as he increased his speed, pacing behind the smaller craft, and sending torrents of energy at it. He was fully caught up in the thrill of the battle now- a defenseless target on the run, thats the way he liked his fights.

The craft suddenly took a sharp downward turn into a vertical dive, and for a brief moment, Starscream caught a glimpse of the res Autobot sigil. With a chuckle, he followed, looping in the air into a straight drop. The ground rushed toward him, the sprawling human city below, and his target in his sights. A mere instant before he hit the ground, his target made a sharp turn, that made a powerful cracking sound. Starscream pulled up quickly to follow him. "He's good." He muttered as he leveled out into the human streets behind him. "Such maneuverability! But he'll soon learn- I'm better!"

His engines roared again, pushing him forward. And in a moment, he was gaining.

----

The humans were aware of the disturbance far before Prowl was. As they turned to see the oncoming craft, some screamed and many scattered. Prowls sensors followed them, just in time to see the triangular craft bearing down on him, with a reddish jet hot in pursuit.

"Holy slag!"

There was another sudden forward burst from the triangular ship, and it charged forward- right toward a massive building. A sickening cackle entered the cacophony of sounds as the craft bared down on the building. It seemed to blur into an alien, almost demonic shape, the bright red face a sickening, laughing grin inside of an unholy demon. Prowl only saw it for a moment, but the appearance of the monster shot fear through his spark. It headed straight into the building, but at the moment of impact, something roared to life, and it disappeared, its gate closing behind it with a crack.

The triangular crafts pursuer was forced into robot mode to avoid taking the building with him. Starscreams feet hit the ground in a screeching skid as he hit the frame of steel, only barely managing to turn his shoulder to absorb most of the impact. The structure began to crumple inward as Starscream pushed himself away, swearing out curses toward his cowardly foe.

Only then did he realize where he was, as a car slammed full speed into his leg. Pain shot up, his systems creaming with the impact. It slammed into the back of his legs, pitching him forward. With an angry shriek, he pushed himself to his feet and whirled, kicking the offending object into the air. Another cars horn blared as it swerved to avoid him- but he was too fast. He reached down and grabbed it, hurtling it aside. Other cars pulled away in desperate attempts to avoid the rampaging Decepticon, but Starscreams fury was too great. With an angry yell, the cannons on his arm came to life, and he opened fire.

And off to the side, Prowl could only watch in horror as the cars began to erupt in flames. The humans had long since forgotten about him, and were now fleeing, but Prowl had no such luxury. Trapped in his own alternate mode, he watched with a growing sense of horror as the Decepticons fire tore a path through the road, cars erupting into flames.

Prowl quaked. Every fiber of his being wanted to Transform and stop the Decepticon, but the thought of what he had done held him back.

A haunting sound filled his audios. Sirens, similar to the ones that pursued his dreams. The humans enforcement was coming.

----

Officer Joseph Fox sped toward the downtown area, refusing to believe what the reports were telling him. At his side his partner Jeff held tightly onto the car door. Adjacent to their vehicle, an entire squad of police vehicles began converging on the same area, distressing reports worrying all of them.

"A jet, flying downtown?" Jeff was saying continually. "That can't be right."

"I don't know..." Joseph muttered. "But if-"

He stopped, his foot slamming down on the break, his mouth agape as his eyes focused on the behemoth before him. "Jesus H. Christ," He whispered, more of a prayer then a curse.

---

Starscream turned as the first of the human enforcement vehicles bore down on him, their sirens roaring as they skidded to a stop, dozens of the tiny beings leaping out of their vehicles to face him.

"Annoying germs." He hissed, staring down at them, already his systems redirecting power to his weapons...

-----

Joseph aimed his gun at the robotic beast before him, his knees quaking. "I didn't sign on to fight robots..." He muttered, backing up slowly.

On the other side of his car, Jeff was quaking too. "It's the same robot. It's the same goddamn robot." He was saying over and over. "It has to be. The same goddamn robot."

More cars were pulling up, their officers at the ready, all ready to fight the being despite their fear. They would not sit by idly.

"Aim for the eyes!" Someone shouted.

Apparently, that was all the provocation Jeff needed. He was the first one to open fire.

---

Starscream stumbled backwards with a shriek as the first bullet hit, more out of surprise then pain. Then a hail followed, the tiny projectiles pelting him. Starscream stood up, his eyes flaring brightly. "How dare they attack me, how dare they attack Starscream!" He roared. "I'll destroy them all!"

His cannons leapt to life.

----

Prowl saw the humans standing together against the Decepticon. They had to know they could not defeat it. They had to know that death was likely. Yet they stood, and fought. Prowl shivered- perhaps, there was more, a lot more to these humans then he had realized.

Then, the Decepticons cry rang through the air. "I'll destroy them all!" The humans, pitiful with their tiny projectiles, yet boldly standing against the war machine in front of them, despite the imminent death. This could not end this way. He would not let it end this way!

Prowl transformed and shot forward with a cry, his arms reaching to grab the Decepticon even as the shots fired, pushed upward into the air by the force of Prowls attack. Starscream stared back at him for the briefest of moments, his optics filling with hatred. With a roar, his superior strength shrugged Prowl aside, and with a quick movement, Prowl was tossed to the side, skidding along the ground and colliding against the human enforcement vehicles.

---

Joseph stared in shock. Now, there were two robots, one of whom had just saved their lives. Yet, the hero robot looked disturbingly familiar. Armored white... could it be?

Then the second robot had been thrown to the ground, landing right in front of him with force that shook the Earth. And he stared up at it, and the robot looked back, its cool eyes staring straight back into his. He heard Jeff turn and run, yet he could not take his eyes off the robots face as it stared back.

And then he heard it's voice. "Please... RUN!"

He didn't wait another second to obey.

---

Prowl didn't have a chance to push himself up before Starscream had grabbed him by his neck and hoisted him off the ground. "Who do you think you are?" Starscream hissed, slamming him against the wall. "You think you can defeat me?" A knee entered Prowls chest and he yelled in pain. "I am Starscream, the greatest Decepticon warrior there is!" The shrill voice screamed at him as a fist connected with his face. "You can't stop me!" He tossed Prowl to the ground, and placed his foot firmly on Prowls back. "And for forcing me to suffer your existence..." Starscream hissed. "I'll crush your spirit before I crush your spark! See the ones you attempted to save? Their lives are forfeit!"

Starscream straightened his arms out, and the cannons on both arms roared to life, firing outwards, creating a red path of destruction in their wake.

From the ground, the fire flashed before Prowls optics as he saw humans fleeing, many getting caught up in the flames. "No..." He whispered weakly, as again the haunting image of his own blood-stained hands returned. "No... I can't let it happen again!"

Strength seemed to flood his circuits as he pushed himself up from the ground. Starscream shrieked as he lost his balanced, and stumbled backwards. Even as he attempted to regain his composure, Prowl was upon him, the duals cannons on his arm springing to life as a punch turned into a blast. Starscreams chest exploded as he stumbled back. Prowl turned, flipping down into vehicle mode and roaring towards him, bringing Starscreams feet out from under him. THe Decepticon fell with a cry, and Prowl whirled, flipping back up into robot.

Starscream pushed himself to his knees, turning to face his opponent. "How... dare... you." He hissed. "I'll kill you... I'll kill them all!"

His arm shot out and fired into a crowd of fleeing humans. Prowls eyes went wide. "No!" He screamed. "No one else must die!" Prowl roared, charging forward, righteous fury emblazoned across his face.

But Starscream was too fast. His sword stored in his wing unsheathed and shot forward, straight into Prowls chest. There was a sickening sound as the blade pierced straight through Prowls body, sticking out the end. Prowl sank to his knees, his intakes creating a gasping sound as they attempted to cool down the rapidly overheating systems.

Starscreams stared straight into Prowls fading optics, as the Decepticons face twisted into a sickening grin. "This is it Autobot. I beat you. It's over. And now... your death is meaningless."

But one final surprise lay in wait. There was another cracking sound, but this one came from reality itself. A gigantic truck rushed through a swirling mass of energy, bearing straight down on Starscream. Starscream screamed in fear as he recognized the form leaping out of vehicle mode at him. Prowl instantly forgotten about, Starscream pushed the limp body away, leaping into the air, even as Optimus's fist landed where only a moment ago his head had been. Starscream transformed, his jet engines roaring as he made his ascent.

"Are you all right?" Optimus said, gently picking up Prowl.

"Hurts..." Prowl answered weakly. "Did I..."

"Don't talk." Optimus answered.

"Get Prowl out of here!" Another voice cried, as Jetfire flew through, his own engines screaming. "I'll finish that Con!"

"Lets get you home." Optimus answered, picking up his friend, and trudging through the still open gate, which closed behind them.

Joseph watched the two go, his mouth agape. He had seen the entire thing unfold, but he would never forget the white robots attempts to save them, nor the gentleness of which his comrade helped him away. "This is going to be one hell of a story." He muttered, staring at the closing gate.

---

"There's a slagging huge amount of something going on over there." Cyclonus growled.

"It doesn't matter!" Sixshot shrieked. "I've done it! Fill up those cubes, quickly!"

"Ok, ok." Cyclonus growled, as the energy syphon roared to life, filling up the transparent containers.

"What is it?" Cyclonus asked quizzically, staring at the molten liquid that came through.

"Liquid energon stores!" Sixshot said giddily. "It's even purer then I had thought! Megatron will be pleased!"

"Yeah right." Cyclonus muttered. "First cubes full."

"Do another, quickly!" Sixshot whooped. "Before-"

"Hey..." Cyclonus asked, staring up at the sky. "Is that... Starscream?"

"YOU IDIOTS!" THe com roared to life. "I'm under attack! Cyclonus, get up here!"

"Attack?" Sixshot cried.

"That's what I like to hear!" Cyclonus whooped.

"NO!" Sixshot screamed again. "Grab the two full cubes! We've got to get out of here!"

Cyclonus attempted to protest, but then thought the better of it after seeing the desperate look in Sixshots lone eye.

"No! What are you doing! Stop! STOP!" But both ignored Starscreams frantic cries as they initiated teleportation, fleeing into the heavens above.

Starscream gave a long cry of frustration. "So close! I WAS SO CLOSE!" Then he too flickered away.

Jetfire pulled himself up, scanning the site where he had briefly glimpsed two other Decepticons. "Well now, lets see what you were up too." He muttered as he landed.

----

"The triumphant returns." Megatron chuckled as Starscream stumbled at of the warp gate. Starscream glanced up at him in confusion, and his eyes quickly settled on Shockwave and Demolisher, their weapons trained on him. In the corner, Cyclonus and SIxshot stood, with their prize at their side- two full energon cubes.

"It was a good plan Starscream." Megatron continued, striding forward toward his form. "But as usual, your incompetence continues to destroy any semblance of credibility you may have once had."

"No Megatron!" Starscream pleaded. "I brought back the cubes, I did more then you ever did, I-"

"Shut. UP." Megatron roared. Starscream shrunk back in fear, quaking like the craven coward everyone knew he was. "You did no such thing." Megatron hissed. "We've been watching from up here. And what I can see is that Sixshot pulled this mission off. YOU failed. Your short-sighted self-serving idiocy turned what could have been a great success into a stalemate. The Autobots have the rest of that vein now, and its YOUR fault."

"No Megatron, I-" His voice ended with a squeak as Megatron grabbed his throat.

"You will return to your quarters." Megatrons voice pierced Starscreams spark. "And there you will stay, until you realize how crippling your own arrogance is." He dropped Starscream, and walked away.

Starscream stared silently at the ground. In the distance, he heard Megatron reaching out, congratulating Sixshot on his efforts and quick thinking. And hatred consumed his very spark. "You'll live to regret those words Megatron. I, Starscream, swear to it..."

-----

"He's stable." Aidia announced. "He was losing spark-energy fast, but I was able to reroute it. He'll survive."

"Thank Primus." Optimus said quietly. "At least, that's over."

Red Alert stared at the young Autobots body, his optic flickering. "Did he think he could make up for what he'd done by doing this?"

"I don't think so." Optimus said quietly. "I just think he wanted to keep it from happening again."

Aidia nodded silently. Red Alert glanced away.

"Major!" A voice through the com broke the silence. "I know what they're after. And I've got a present for you too."

"Bring it back to base." Optimus answered. "Maybe we can get some questions answered now."

They turned to leave. Aidia was the last to go, casting a quick glance at Prowls unmoving body, before she left the room, casting it into darkness.

----

A gentle knock roused Michelle from her sleep. "What is it?" She called groggily.

"It's me." Ben's voice answered as he let himself in. "I just thought you should know, the robots have been sighted again."

"I don't care." She growled. "I'm sick of the robots. Every damn one of them."

Ben glanced at her and shrugged. "Suit yourself." He answered, but still left the paper he was carrying on her little desk. She sighed, and lay back down. A few minutes later, curiosity got the better of her, and she picked up the paper, looking at the photograph and reading through the story and interviews that followed.

She put it down, and her head rested in her hand. "Now... their saving people again..." She said quietly to herself. " I don't understand..." Her eyes wandered to the floor, where the crumpled up paper drawing of an all-too-familiar knight stared back at her. "Well..." She asked it quietly. "Who are you? Knight? Or demon?"

No answer came back.

-----


	2. Transportation and Energon

TFE

Transporter and other Info

Copyright 2006, masterfwiffo. All rights reserved.

Transporter Technology

The basic need for Transporting technology came with the increased difficulty of warships to enter a planets atmosphere. Effective warships, by the very nature of their design, do not handle entering or leaving the atmosphere well. Shuttles provided a temporary, but ultimately inefficient solution. To solve the problems, both sides in the Autobot/Decepticon war began extensive research.

The Autobots delved deeply into 'space bridge' technology. Space Bridges are created by use of a warp hole, that instantly connects two points in space. Also called warp-gates, they allowed movements of large numbers of troops very fast, and very efficient- one warp gate could move hundreds. The range was particularly notable- one generator could connect point across the entirety of a small planet. But it had it's drawbacks. While the energy required to create one is small, it does take awhile for the warp-gate generator to recharge, making sending one or two bots on a lone mission ill-advisable. But the larger disadvantage was that anyone could use the warp gate- tactical retreats are made difficult due the willingness of the enemy to follow through the created space-bridge.

The Decepticons took an entirely different approach to the Transportation problem. Their ultimate solution, simply called Transporters, disassembled and reassembled matter from a single station to any point within a limited range. While the energy required is larger, Transportation beams work much, much faster, and transport with far more accuracy then their space-bridge counterparts. In addition, it is far, far harder for the enemy to follow during a retreat, as only objects connected through touch will transport with the primary target. The activation for the transporter is almost universally located in the Decepticon insignia all Decepticons are required to wear.

It is believed that still other forms of transporting exist, including rumored self-created warp gates that some have claimed to see with mysterious, shadowy figures that seem to creep up from time to time around the universe. But these instances are mostly regarded as myth.

Energon

Energon is a rare material found only in certain conditions. A highly radioactive, liquid form of Lithium, it can only be created in high temperatures and pressures existent in planet cores. The unique properties of Energon make is a solid energy container, often taking energy straight from the heat from which it was created. It becomes locked throughout the magma, and collects in pools. Deposits occasionally rise near the crust, where they can be drilled out. The energon is still locked within the magma, so it takes a complex filter to be able to draw the energon out into a stable form.

Energon is required by Transformers to live, and as an extension, to power their weapons (almost all power of which comes directly from their core systems). Several transformers have developed alternate ways of refueling, and energon substitutes are readily available. Energon substitutes require much energy to create, but can easily keep transformers alive with no ill effects. But when pure energon is consumed, the benefits are far greater- a Transformer can last a far longer time on pure energon then on any substitute.

Cybertron, the Transformer home-world, was the first planet where Energon was discovered, where the Transformers fed on it naturally. Unfortunately, with the escalation of the Autobot and Decepticon war, Energon reserves on Cybertron quickly dried up, and more sources were needed.

Most planets where Energon is discovered is quickly mined dry, either by the Autobots and Decepticons, or by the Quintessons. While the Quintessons have little use for the material, they do realize the profits that can be gained and quickly capitalize on any opportunity that presents itself.

Earth has one of the largest Energon deposits found in recent memory. The rumor of the amount found there lead Megatron to the planet. When word gets out of the resources available, the planet will become contested by all three of the major galactic powers.

-----


End file.
